UOI OFFICES (February 23, 2016) – Grand Council Chief Patrick Madahbee says the Anishinabek Nation continues to support the 2010/30 Chiefs-in-Assembly resolution which states that the Anishinabek Nation stands united and opposes any deep geological nuclear waste repositories within the Anishinabek Nation Territory.

“We respect Federal Minister of Environment and Climate Change Catherine McKenna in requesting additional studies before she can make an environmental decision,” says Madahbee.

Lake Huron supplies drinking water to millions of people in Canada and the U.S., it is also a significant ecosystem that supports the livelihoods of the Anishinabek Nation. Ontario Power Generation is facing international opposition as 184 municipalities have passed resolutions opposing Ontario Power Generation’s proposal and proposed waste repository.

According to the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples – to which Canada is signatory — States shall take effective measures to ensure that no storage or disposal of hazardous materials shall take place in the lands or territories of indigenous peoples without their free, prior and informed consent.

The Anishinabek Nation established the Union of Ontario Indians as its secretariat in 1949. The UOI is a political advocate for 39 member communities across Ontario, representing approximately 60,000 people. The Union of Ontario Indians is the oldest political organization in Ontario and can trace its roots back to the Confederacy of Three Fires, which existed long before European contact.